Vanceboro adjusts while officer is on leave; alleged gunman still in hospital

VANCEBORO — The Vanceboro Police Department will be working shorthanded for the next few days while the State Bureau of Investigation reviews the actions of officer Jason Lovick, who is on paid administrative leave following an officer-involved shooting.

VANCEBORO — The Vanceboro Police Department will be working shorthanded for the next few days while the State Bureau of Investigation reviews the actions of officer Jason Lovick, who is on paid administrative leave following an officer-involved shooting.

Authorities say Lovick is the officer who shot and wounded 82-year-old John Aites Jenkins, a River Road man who investigators say shot three people Tuesday along Streets Ferry Road a few miles outside of Vanceboro.

Lovick ended the shooting spree by shooting Jenkins shortly after the alleged gunman had wounded his third victim, Billy Arthur Dail, investigators say.

All three shooting victims — Dail, Angelo Tavares Williams and Brian Lee Holden — are at home, recovering from their injuries. Jenkins remains hospitalized at Vidant Medical Center in Greenville in critical condition.

It is routine for the SBI to review cases where law enforcement officers are involved with shootings. While Lovick is away, Vanceboro Police Chief James Jenkins Jr. — no relation to the alleged gunman — says the town is working to keep things covered.

“You wouldn’t think something like this would happen in your area,” he said of the incident. “The last thing you want to do is use lethal force. It was scary, but we’re here to do a job.”

The problem for a little town like Vanceboro is that Lovick is the only full-time officer on the force, other than the chief. Otherwise, James Jenkins said, the police department is staffed by two part-timers and two reservists.

The chief said he will primarily use his part-timers to cover Lovick’s shifts.

It is unclear when the SBI review of Lovick will be complete.

In email correspondence with the Sun Journal, Jennifer Canada, assistant public information officer for the N.C. Department of Justice, said the department does not speculate on how long an investigation will take because each one is different.

“Once the investigation is complete, agents will turn over a report of their findings to the local DA for review and decision-making,” she wrote.

Chief Jenkins said community support and response from the area has been “overwhelming” since Tuesday’s events.

“It’s been great,” he said. “We’ve had calls from other agencies to help fill in, to cover patrols.”

Vanceboro has mutual aid agreements with other police departments in the area, and several have offered to fill in any holes while the SBI investigation runs its course.

“I really appreciate it,” the chief said, “But I think at this time, we’ll be OK.”